Photo credit: Arthur Wessel
Tell us about your tour vehicle. Any notable breakdown stories?
2013 Ford E350 (15 passenger) aka “Black Betty” or “Ole Betty”. She is sitting at probably 215k miles. We have replaced the tires, AC lines, transmission twice, and batteries. That’s all that comes to mind right now.
This one’s a bit of a story. The most notable break-down would have to be the transmission. We were on a super long tour that was planned to end with a week in the studio. We played our way down to Miami which actually happened to be Adam’s big 3-0 birthday. After the show, some of us went out on the town to celebrate. Turns out Adam just stayed out all night celebrating the big day. We picked him up at 9am outside of some giant club and jumped on the interstate to head to Memphis to make an album. About 20-30 minutes outside of Miami, the transmission gave out on us. It just so happened to be Sunday and there was only one place open so we called a tow truck and sent the van to the shop. We decided to get the transmission repaired and not replaced because it was cheaper.
We called our studio engineer, Jeremy Horn of Paloma Studios, and had to tell him all of our studio money had to now go to fixing Betty’s transmission. He said, “Find a way to get up here and let’s make a record. We’ll figure out the money later”. So we rented an SUV and pulled our gear up to Memphis. We spent a week or so at the studio and had to fly Cody back down to FL to pick up the van and drive it to ATL to meet up with us. Meanwhile, the rest of us borrowed Zach’s dad’s truck to haul our trailer down to ATL. We had two more shows left on the tour at this point. We finished our last show in Alabama somewhere and once again, got about 15 miles out of town and the newly repaired transmission gave out on us. This was about 1am and we had maybe 48 hours to get to the next show all the way in CO. We had no choice but to leave it at a random gas station and trek on.
After paying more tow fees, flights, hotels, storage fees, and a new transmission, the band ran out of funds. Because we are a touring band and van prices were at an all time high, we had no choice but to fix Betty. Thankfully we have the best fans and friends anyone could ask for. We put on a fundraising show and launched a GoFundMe. Now Betty is back on the road and we’re playing music!
How do you eat cheaply and/or healthy while on tour?
This varies so much. We have the best intention for eating cheaply and stop at grocery stores from time to time, but it’s so hard to keep “healthy” food good while traveling in a van. So we usually end up eating out more than we’d like to or plan to. It’s also difficult when you’re traveling through all of these places that are known for certain foods. We sometimes feel obligated to indulge in the local cuisine.
Mostly we eat healthy. Zachy G and Lucas will eat fast food sometimes. It’s very hard to eat healthy when we go to the south. Fried chicken is Justin’s favorite and how can we pass up soul food, BBQ, and country fixins when we don’t have too much of that out here in Colorado. We love southern food, but it’s definitely not the healthiest.
How many strings do you break in a typical year? How much does it cost to replace them?
Adam goes through strings left and right. Sometimes every show or every other show. Zachy G has only broken one bass string throughout this whole adventure. We’re always replacing strings to keep them fresh. Nothing beats a new pair of strings and a freshly set up guitar. Strings get pricey for Adam, so he likes to buy them in bulk when he can. Bass strings cost an arm and a leg usually ranging from $35-$40 a pack. Zach goes through about 3 or 4 pairs of strings for each bass (3) each year. Roughly $400-$480 a year.
Where do you rehearse?
Our rehearsal space is unreal and we are extremely fortunate. A few years back, the original band was playing a show in a tiny saloon up in the mountains and were discussing how difficult it was to find a place to rehearse up in the mountains. Space is extremely pricey and limited. We met a gentleman who mentioned he had a “barn” we could rehearse in. His name is Cody Scott, which just so happens to be the exact first and last name of our keyboardist, Cody Scott.
Turns out this “barn” is a glorified man cave. There’s a wood burning stove, full bar that’s always stocked, couches, neon signs, and a bathroom. Open up the door to go outside and you’ll find an abundance of wildlife including elk, deer, turkeys, and bald eagles on a daily basis. It sits right on the Brush Creek with pristine ice cold water and trickling waterfalls. Look up and you’re surrounded by mountains. We have one of the most inspirational and secluded rehearsal spaces anyone could ask for. Thank you Cody Scott for the rehearsal space. We couldn’t do it without you.
What was the title and a sample lyric from the first song that you wrote?
“Song Without Sin: is the title. This was our first single release ever as well.
In the rolling thunder, sand in the wind
I’m just a man on the go, with nothing left to win
I’ll wilt like a rose, with a hard-loving grin
There’s a song on the road, a song without sin
Describe your first gig.
As the original 3 piece band, we played at Vail Brewing Company, a local brewery here in the Vail Valley, CO. We were anxious and excited. Justin played a cajon, Adam played an acoustic guitar, and Zac played his lap steel. We were not super rehearsed, played a bunch of covers, and didn’t take a break for 3 hours. Zac had an incident early during the day and showed up to the gig with huge burn blisters on his fingers and still managed to play the entire show.
Our first gig as a 5 piece was at the same local brewery. It was standing room only and a packed house that flowed out of the brewery. Our friends and fans were super excited to hear the 5 piece. We ran our own sound and couldn’t hear much.
What was your last day job? What was your favorite day job?
Zachy G – I was a middle school mathematics teacher for 7 years. I am a creator at heart, which has taken me through many entrepreneurial endeavors over the years. Currently, I own and operate an entertainment company in the mountains which features a talent agency, AV rentals, and event coordinating. My favorite day job was working at a bike shop doing bicycle maintenance and sales.
Justin has been a tradesman since the beginning of time. He moved to the mountains and did framing work for a while. He currently does carpentry side jobs and passion projects for fun.
Adam Tobin – My favorite day job was working as director for the “UNITY” youth development programs at a local non-profit in North Adams, Massachusetts, The Northern Berkshire Community Coalition. This included running various programs such as creative writing, community service, and a program that paired the arts with the outdoors for students ages 14-19. Working for NBCC rewarded me with the rich opportunity to work closely with an incredibly resilient and wonderful community of active residents and professionals who were dedicated to enriching and strengthening the town of North Adams and the community of Northern Berkshire in a collective and unified effort.
How has your music-related income changed over the past 5-10 years? What do you expect it to look like 5-10 years from now?
Well we started making no money. We played solely for the joy and passion of playing music. That evolved into small guarantees plus tips. Now our guarantees are much larger and we play for a percentage of ticket sales. Of course, more sales equals more money. We make enough to get by and have some fun in between. As our income has exponentially increased, so have our expenses!
In the future, our hope is to have our musical endeavors fully support our lifestyles with room to have savings and investment opportunities. Ditch the side jobs altogether and comfortably support a crew.
What one thing do you know now that you had wished you knew when you started your career in music?
Justin – “Don’t have expectations, be patient. It’s easy to get caught up and rush things into something that you’re not yet.”
Zachy G – “Create a master marketing plan before releasing your music. You’ve worked so hard to create this beautiful art and you want as many people to hear it as possible. Invest in planning, content creation, and all that jazz. Most of all, enjoy the ride. Don’t forget why you started playing music in the first place. If you start to lose the ability to find joy in the music, take a step back and seek balance. “